MPOC to promote palm oil benefits in schools - Teresa

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 6 -- The Malaysian Palm Oil Council (MPOC) will go to the ground to promote palm oil and its benefits through outreach programmes involving school children, possibly, including it as a co-curriculum programme.

Primary Industries Minister Teresa Kok Suh Sim said the MPOC would sit down, discuss and strategise with headmasters and teachers on how to make this possible.

“This could be a way to defend our commodity from the negative perception of the west. We need to start from the school to educate Malaysians about palm oil,” she told reporters after the launch of the Palm Oil Student Ambassador Programme at Sekolah Jenis Kebangsaan (C) Choong Wen here today.

Kok also presented certificates to Palm Oil Student Ambassador trainers to engage Malaysian students to spread awareness on the palm oil industry’s significance to the nation and unfounded accusations against palm oil, particularly the unfair anti-palm oil campaign by non-governmental organisations in the west. 

In the past, she said similar programmes were organised in Sekolah Kebangsaan Taman Desa and SMK Seri Sentosa, and these schools have even put up a palm oil information wall to educate their students.

The programme today was organised by the MPOC to raise awareness among school children on the importance of palm oil.

It also aims to empower students with accurate knowledge on palm oil, instill pride in the nation’s biggest commodity and equip the younger generation with correct information to counter allegations and share knowledge with others. 

-- BERNAMA